PROGRESSRFZORT on the &ATIOI~ 0~ wx HOLD~GS OF 'IEE CROW'S NEST PASS COAL COMFWN, LT% cf F'emie, British Cdum?;ia \ C!ula* Collmhh Iron iblilri%’ compe.qy - United St&3 Steel Csrpcration Sut;s?dZsr‘j _. By Arthur R. Still Consulting Hinir~~Engineirs & Gcolo ,ists Prescott,.&dsaOLbG!CAL BRANCH ASSESSMENT REPORT April 15, 0061 295 PRRFACR , _. !’ Because of the fact that the writer was not advised until some weeks after the close of the field season that the responsibility of pre- paring the current progress report would be his, some dataare lacking that otherwise would have been included. Foremost amongst such needed information is more complete cent data pertaining to the mining operation at Kichel, and more extensive photographic coverage to help the reader visualize the terrain and specific pieces of work that were accomplished. The very fine earlier reports written by, or for, the Corporation have been drawn upon freely. These reports, by Old, et. al. and the three by Sweeney, have Drovlded much information to the current report and have added grer.tly to it. Fc: the combined purposes of convenience and brevity, several abbreviations are used in this text. These are set forth below: Corporation = the United States Steel Corporation Colmbia = Columbia Iron Mining Company Coal company = The Crew's Nest Pass Coal Company, Ltd. cropco = a word coined from the Coal Company name (by the Raw Haterials Division - Pittsburgh) to identify the over-all project of this exam- ination and appraisal. It is used herein not only to this end but also, with a post- script, to break the over-all examination into yearly periods, i.e. Cropco ‘60, cropco ‘61, etc. A.-.R. S. , TABJiE OF COh-lTXTS (’ Page SUMMARP.............................. i lXTRODUCTION . 1 Purpose and Scope of Investigation .............. 1 Previouswork ........................ 2 Present Invetitigation .................... 3 Acknowledgements ....................... 4 LOCATION,ACCESSIBILITYANDC~ ................ 6 PROPERTY DEscRIPr10N AND vIniERsHIP. ................ g The Crow's Nest Pass'Coal Company, Ltd. ........... 9 others ............................ g GEOLOGICSETT~ ......................... summarg statement ...................... I2 Stratigrsphy ....................... ..E structure ....................... ...15 BISTORY, DEVELOPMEWl' AIDI PBODUCTION. ............... 18 Generalstatements ...................... 18 CoalCreekArea ..................... ..2 0 MichelArea ....................... ..2 2 PmsIcALwoBK- CROPCO '60 .................... 35 flmrmsrystatement ... ..*................3 5 benching ....................... ...3 6 GeolQ3icMaming.......................3 7 ~~ng-~-sampling .............. ..*.3 7 Road Constrwtion ...................... 40 M=ondD-NT.......................~ 0 A-f~--~r@w. ..................... 44 Page HelicopterUse ....................... 44 CostData .... ..................... 45 COALBDS.. .......................... 46 General Mscussion ..................... 46 Comelation ......................... 47 District wide ...................... 47 Morrissep Ridge Sector ................. 50 NatureoftheCoalSeams .................. 52 coaLQuality ......................... 55 COALQUALITYTESTIIJGPROGRAM .................. 59 ESTIMATDmSERVES ........................ 60 ReserveEstimates byOthers ................ 60 Potential Coal Reserves - Morrissey Ridge Sector ...... 61 DE~%L~P~IE~W~~IT~~CSTESP~S. .............. 66 M7XlTGGEOLoGY ........................ a Mine Access ......................... 63 Uater,Gas and Drainage .................. 68 Eimi'psandOutbursts ...................... 69 RoofandF!LoorRocks .................... 70 Overburden ........................ 70 structure ......................... 70 ECONOMICS ............................ 72 coalccmrpany ........................ 72 TheCorporatIon ...................... 73 PROPOSEDPRCGRAM-CROPCO'61 .................. -i-l Furpose and sccpe ...................... n Personnel ......................... 77 Reconnaissance work ..................... 78 Kichel~aExamiaationand Appraisal ........... 80 mam0nahFuiag ..................... 80 FernieRidgeEetailArea ................. 81 Esth&aco& ...................... 82 co~?cm~o~smmco~~~~~~~(~s ................. 84 REFERXNCES ........................... 87 . LIST OF lLLETRATIONS Map or Plate Number Page Plate1 Option Alternatives . - foLkwing . 2 ‘1, 6c-403, ,. Propel-tYMaP - Crow's Nest Pass and South Portion \ Elk River Coal Fields. " - . 9 Plate2' Coal' Ftields of Southeastern British Colvnbia (Bcale 1" = 1O'miles) . " . 10 I Generalized Geology - Crow's Nest Pass and South Portion Euc River Coal Fields (scale 1" = 3.06 mi)!' . 1l Plate 3 ! I~,:’,;n'Generalized StratigraphIc Column of Coal Seams i 1' (' CoalCreekMiningArea . ., . .19 6c-405 !’ Mine Workings - Elk River Colliery (Coal Creek) Area (scale1"=2,000') . n.. 23 / I Plate 4 Generalized Stratigraphic Column of Coal Seams MIchelMiningArea . ...25 Plate 5 J Structure Contour and Seam Gutcmp Map Mlchel Area (scale 1" = 1,600’) . ; . 28 #plate 6 ’ Michel "A" Seam Workings (scale 1" = 1,600') . 29 Plate 7 / MI&e1 "B" Seam Workings (scale 1" = 1,600’) . 30 Plate 81 Michel - Cross Section Through Rock Tuonels (scd.e 1" =800') . - . 31 6~-323 ' Topography and Geology - Morrissey Ridge Sector Cmpco '60 Mapping (scale 1" = 1,000 ft.) . n . 37 6~-57C' Cropco $60 Bulk sample No. 1, Adit No. 3 . c . 39 6~-571/ Cmpco '60 Bulk sample No. 2, Adlt No. 6 . ? . 39 63-572 ~. Cropco '60 Bulb Sample ITo. 3, Adit No. 7 . , . " , . 39 6~-573 Cmpco '60 Bulk Sample No. 4 and 5, Adit No. 5 . n . 39 6~-fl4 .~~ cropco '6-O Bulk sample No. 6, Adit No. 8 . n . 39 6B-5-75 ’ Cropco '60 Eulk sample No. 7, Adit No. 2 . n . 39 6~~576' ~ropco 160 B.J.EX Sample Na. 8, Adit No. 9 . " . 39 6~577,~ Cmpco '60 Bulk sample No. 9, Adit No. ll . " . 39 Following Page Cropco '60 Bulk Sample No. 10, No. 10 Seam, Niche1 . 39 Preliminary Correlation - Lkill Hole B.C.-l to Ridge p-Outcrop (scale 1" = 500' and 200'). I . 43 Morriesey Ridge Sector Detail. ! Data - Bound in Rear of Report 6~304 / Strati raphic Section and Coal Seam Detail, Ridge 1 tsScales 1" = 10 and 100 pt.) 6x-305 Sttitigraphic SectionandC0al SeamDetail, Ridge 3 6s306 ~ n n 4 61.1-307 i n n 7 6~-308 i II n 9 6s3oq ~ " n 10 6~-30 II 'I I.2 6~:-= 6~312 ': 6M-313 6~-34 ',~ 7, n 17 6~-35 ; II n 18 6&3&S i n " 19 -,6M-3l7 I, " 20 6~-38 " " 21 6%29 ~ m First Ridge Nofb of Homer Creek (STILE scales as above) 6~-320 _ Stratigraphic Section and Cod. Seam Detail, Graphic Legend In Pocket 6~~44 Fernie and Monlssey Ridges - Main Cropco '60 Base Map (scale 1:40,000) / 66145 Correlation Section - Kootenay Formation - Morrissey ‘_ Ridge Sector (scales I." = 1,000' Horiz. I" = 200' Vert..) 6~146 Potential Coal Ttige Section - Morrissey Ridge Sector (scales - same as up No. 6~-145) 6~-312 .*ologic Cross Sections - Morrissey Ridge Sector (1" = 1,OOO') TABLES ,!( Page I Coal Produced at Collieries of the Crow's Nest Coal Basin (District Production to Date) . 21 II Ret Production - coal Creek by Mines and Seams . 23 III htaonCoalSeams-CoslCreekArea . ...24 Iv Estimate.of Cost per Ton of Cleaned Coal, F.O.B. WasherySidin& Michel, B. C. 34 V Drill Hole Sumaary, BDH EC-1 . 43 VI Thicknesses by Ridges - Kootenay Formation and. Coal Seams - MorrisseyFidge Sector . l& VII Smmary.oP Calculations Based on Wesbability Testing - Cropco '60 Four T,on Bulk Samples . 57 VIII A Potential Tonnage by Seams - Morrissey I?+dge Block . 64 B " I, by Cropco 160 Sample mmbers . 64 Ix Crow's Nest Pass Coal Co., Ltd. - 1960 Cod Sales . 74 X Crow's Nest Pas; Coal Co., Ltd. - 1960 Coke Sales . 75 APPENDED DATA A History - The Companies' lands . Bound in rear B Analyses of ~ropco ‘60 A&it channel %nples . It tl * C Sunmary of Tonnage Estimates by J. F. Sweeney . o w m LIST OFPHM'CGR4PEE A. Elk River Colliery - E&ton Conveyor and Inclined Hoist. Followingn page 22 B. F3.k River colliery - washery ....... n 22 mw=2 Michel Colliery Washery ............ ” 32 ” n-3 A. North Portion - Morrissey Ridge . 35 B. Centrdl Portion - Morrissey Ridge . n ; 35 Figure4 A. Lover Kootenay Formation - Looking North 91 ” 36 fTo?nTop of BasalKootenayonRidgelO . , . B. Typical Trench in Basal Kootenay Seam . I, ” 36 l, %3Q=5 A. Portal - Adfit iVo. 2, Ridge10 . 36 B. Portal - New No. 10 Mine - Michel . n ,” 38 C. Pack Team Used to Haul coal - at end of mad, Ridge 10 '. - . .-. A. Site of DDH E-1, from MiErmave Road . I, ” 42 B. Site of DDH E-1, close up . n ” 42 Helicopter After Crash . II ” 44 1 Introduction: In line with a long-tern program for the expansion of western united states steel production the Corporation, in 1949, conducted a survey of western Canadian coking coal deposits. This Investigation revealed that the Crow's Nest Coal Fields, of eastern British Columbia, contained the largest such reserve in western canada. Cm May 1; 1960 the Corporation entered into an "Investigation and Option Agreement", with the Crow's Best Pass Coal Co., Ltd. of Femie, B. C., the fee owners of the largest part of the Crou's Rest Coal Fields. This agreement gives the Corporation the right to enter and examine the extensive Coal Companyholdings, over a four year period, andthe right to purchase those holdings, or parts thereof, prior to the end of +&t period. Physical work on the actual field examination of the Coal Company ground was started on June 1, 1960, and continued, in 'the drilling phase, up to November 2blih, 1960. !l!he report contained herein is a progress report on the first year of the above cited examination and appraisal. Location, Accessibility